HGA GROW | CENTOCOW

A pilot site has been established at the Centocow Mission Station near Creighton, where one can now find a fully operational food garden. The garden serves as a permanent site where ongoing community engagement and empowerment can take place. It exists as a neutral space within the community from where agricultural education and support can be offered to both the young and the old. The mission is located next door to the busy St Apollinaris Hospital and therefore an important hub for the greater populace. It is a landmark in what is a vast swathe of rural communities stretching from Creighton, south-west to Franklin and Kokstad and south to Umzimkhulu.

The mission station has a history of great agricultural productivity and was once a breadbasket for the surrounding communities and so it is with excitement that we have begun cultivation here, hopefully to continue that legacy. We have started small with a 800 m² plot where we have planted cabbage, spinach, butternut, beetroot and carrot which will initially be sold to local vendors in order to sustain the programme but may also be donated to local creches and old age facilities as the need is determined.

The student we have enlisted to help us is Bongekile Mngxadi, who comes from the area. She manages the day-to-day running of the food garden and will be tasked with putting plans in place to offer support to existing and would-be farmers. During quieter spells she has been given the opportunity to be able to gain further work experience on a neighbouring commercial dairy farm.

Centocow Mission Station